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Welcome to this not-for-profit paywall-free resource database & website created by Michael Vaughan PhD
An Award-Winning weekly columnist for Canada's top newspapers including the National Post, Globe& Mail and Financial Times
 Tuesday May 13, 2025
Current monthly MAY average of 2,368 daily individual visitors with 31,825 hits per day

About Vintage Assessments
our roots - check it out here
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our tasting report is coming shortly
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SEE OUR SUPPORTER EXCLUSIVES
MAY 24 VINTAGES RELEASE SUMMARY
and
JUNE 7 VINTAGES RELEASE SUMMARY
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Current Tasting at Toronto Store 149
A great Flagship store on Bloor West just east of Royal York

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MAY 10 Vintages Release
MORE NEW REVIEWS BEING POSTED TODAY

See our linked May 10 Buyers Guide
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NEW ITALIAN WHITE HIGHLIGHT

Villa Antinori Bianco 2023
#620948 - $19.95 - 90-points
Versatile and ready-to-enjoy. This bright, fresh, crowd-pleasing Tuscan white hits the value pleasure spot. Pale straw in colour, the nose exudes freshness with some floral, ripe winter melon fruit along with a hints of minerality. Dry, medium bodied, fresh, bright, citrus-tinged, ripe, honeydew flavours with a lingering, harmonious, faintly minerally, crisp finish. Delicious, versatile and perfectly ready-to-enjoy, this tasty unoaked bend of Trebbiano, Pinot Grigio, Pinot Bianco and Riesling has a modest 12% alcohol.
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Noteworthy New 2022 Chardonnay

Norman Hardie Chardonnay Unfiltered
LCBO NEW RELEASE - 184432 - $39.20
Ripe, Rich, Toasty ***/***+ (94-points)
Here is the new just-tasted 2022 Niagara Chardonnay that was recently released by the winery at some 30+ selected LCBO stores. Bright medium straw colour. Very intense and complex with a toasty, ripe, lemon meringue pie nose with lots of minerally, cedary notes. Dry, medium-full bodied, well textured, rich, ripe, mouthfilling, lemon meringue flavours with a long, lingering, minerally, buttery brioche, key lime pie finish. Aged for 18 months (2 winters) in large format French oak barrels and bottled without filtration.

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A GREAT SPRING ROSE
Lafage Miraflors Rose 2023

VINTAGES ESSENTIAL - 367375 - $19.95
Fresh, Bright, Youthful **+ (89 points)
This just retasted VINTAGES ESSENTIAL release of Lafage's 2023 classic southern French Rose is perfect for Mother's Day. It comes in a very attractive, designer bottle with a convenient recyclable glass stopper. Bright very pale pink colour, it has fresh, gently spicy, floral, ripe, melon-apple-pear aromatics. Dry, medium to medium-light bodied, youthful, slightly spicy, fresh, honeycrisp apple flavours and a lingering bright finish. A tasty blend of 50% Mourvedre, 30% Grenache Gris and 20% Grenache with 12.5% alcohol.


WELCOME TO OUR PAYWALL-FREE DATABASE
visit our search engine and discover
73,000+ LINKED SCORES/NOTES
click here to SEARCH releases
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Vintages 2025 Buyers Guide
unpaid-for non-advertorial reviews

LINKED 2025 VINTAGES BUYERS GUIDE
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A NEW FRENCH SPRINGTIME BARGAIN

Villa Blanche Viognier 2023
NEW BEST BUY NON-VINTAGES RELEASE - 32019 - $17.00
Ripe, Bright, Melon-Apple-Pear **+ (89-points)
This tasty crowd-pleasing Pays D'Oc has a bright medium straw colour and is loaded with attractive, ripe, melon-apple-pear fruit on the nose with hints of spicy minerality. Refreshing, medium bodied and bright, the ripe, melon-apple-pear fruit flavours are followed up by a lingering harmonious finish. This 100% Viognier from Mediterranean vineyards has 13% alcohol and comes with a convenient screwcap closure. Versatile and ready-to-drink.
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NEW BEST BUY FRENCH RED

Domaine Lafage
Bastide Miraflors 2022
NEW MAY VINTAGES RELEASE - 320499 - $19.95
Solid, Bright, Ripe, Black Cherry Fruit *** (90-points)
This very tasty crowd-pleaser has a deep intense purple colour and is loaded with attractive, ripe, cassis-plum-black-cherry fruit on the nose. Dry, medium bodied and bright, the juicy, ripe, plum-cherry-cassis flavours are followed up by a lingering, gently cedary, dark-chocolate-tinged, smooth finish. This blend of 70% Syrah and 30% Grenache has 15% alcohol with lot number L25010B on the lower part of the glass bottle. It is the 19th Vintages release to date and pairs perfectly with bbq ribs, steak and sausages hot off the grill.
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BARGAIN GEORGIAN RED

Koncho Saperavi 2022
NEW VINTAGES - 466458 - $15.95
Dry, Bright, Raspberry-Plum **/**+ (88.5-points)
This indigenous 100% Saperavi variety produces Georgia's top red wines. Deep purple-red in colour, it has a slightly floral, faintly spicy, ripe, plum-black-cherry nose with a touch of cedar. Dry, medium bodied and tasty, the still youthful, ripe, plum-raspberry flavours are followed up by a lingering, gently cedary, very bright finish. This versatile, ready-to-drink, crowd-pleaser was matured for 12 months in oak and is the 8th time it has appeared in Vintages.
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Discovering Ontario's Wine Roots

See the original Toronto Life articles from 1975/76
Inniskillin 50th Anniversary
the very first new winery license since 1929
the 12th winery in Ontario the only one growing 100%
European vinifera grapes from Chardonnay to Cabernet Sauvignon

Ontario Wines Discovered
HUGH JOHNSON & TOP WINE WORLD CRITICS AT LONDON'S FIRST-EVER CANADIAN TASTING
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Copyright Michael Vaughan 2025
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